Priest Ioan Istrati
You know that now all the pop culture is infested irremediably with super heros. Hundreds of deeply inhuman movies and characters.
Last summer a tour church a family came from a distance of 400 kilometers, I won`t say from where. They had a small girl with complete non verbal autism. The girl was crying terribly when they wanted to bring her inside the church. She struggled with an incredible force, cried and gave blows on the air
I told her mother not to insist anymore as I was to go outside and read prayers for her. It is much saying prayers as the girl cried and screamed all the time and hit herself a few times. I prayed shortly to Saint John the Russian to save her from the evil and from that disease. After a minute the child could not be held anymore and she left with her father to the car. I continued the prayers with the Saint`s epitrachelion and cap on the head of her mother who was crying heavily.
I gave them as a canon of prayer to read the Paraklesis of the Holy Mother of God and the Akathist of Saint John the Russian, oil from the Holy Unction from our church. I mentioned the gilr`s name at all the holy services.
Yesterday they came again. The child cried and screamed again at the entrance in the church but only for a while. I reminded her she had come before to our church. I smiled to her. I showed her the icons. The girl already utters a few words, she says she is four years old, she kisses the icon with Saint John the Russian and hugs it. The doctors had crushed the hearts of her parents that she would never speak.
We see that by the help of Saint John the Russian the child speaks a little, she doesn`t scream anymore, she smiles and looks at the people, she recognizes them. I gave her a plush toy with Spiderman, a tou I had in my office.
She stayed very quiet at the prayers, she caressed the Holy Cross and kissed it. The parents cried but out of their happiness.
The father told me:
`Father, she likes the movies with super heroes.
I told him:
The super hero from her life doesn`t jump up from buildings and doesn`t burn with his look. He flies to those who pray tearfully and heal their children. It is Saint John the Russian.
